


Roger Over and Out

by RockSunner



Series: Smart Adversaries AU [51]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Action/Adventure, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir Identity Reveal, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, False Accusations, Investigations, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug Identity Reveal, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-07
Updated: 2020-08-02
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:02:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23057425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RockSunner/pseuds/RockSunner
Summary: What if Roger Raincomprix was paying more attention at the end of Rogercop?
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Series: Smart Adversaries AU [51]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/994671
Comments: 23
Kudos: 23





	1. The Bracelet

Ladybug and Chat Noir were fighting Rogercop in the mayor's office. They took refuge behind a table with a scale model of a district in Paris (part of a renovation plan) as the villain fired his handcuffing gun at them.

"The akuma must be in his whistle," said Ladybug. "We've got to get to it!"

"How?" asked Chat Noir.

There was no time to answer because Rogercop leaped to the top of the table and fired down at them. They dodged and ran, this time hiding from the gunfire behind a wooden partition that served as a clothes-changing area for Mayor Bourgeois. There was a clothing dummy there with a spare belt fastened around its waist.

"Whenever you're ready, m'Lady," said Chat with stress in his voice.

Ladybug concentrated and scanned the room. There was an oven mitt hanging on the tea table that was an exact match in size to the polka-dotted one she had obtained as a Lucky Charm – that had to be part of the plan. The guns were built into the top of Rogercop's arms. What if he couldn't aim them? The belt from the dummy would help to tie his arms, but she needed something to pull them together quickly...

"Okay, I have an idea, but I still need something like... a ring."

Rogercop punched through the wall next to them. They had to scurry away again, this time halfway across the room, behind the Mayor's desk. Ladybug snagged the yellow oven mitt from the tea table as she leaped.

Ladybug asked Chat, "Where am I going to get a ring from?"

Chat didn't answer for a moment. Ladybug kept her eyes focused on the villain and his shots.

"Ladybug, over there!" said Chat. He pointed to a vase in the corner behind them. Beside it was a small metallic object.

"That's Chloé's bracelet! Exactly what I need," said Ladybug, grabbing it up with her yo-yo. "Fend off Rogercop as long as you can."

"Whenever you're ready," said Chat, with confidence this time.

Chat Noir did better than fend Rogercop off. He did a Cataclysm on the floor under the villain's feet, causing him to fall into a hole in the floor and get stuck. Chat was caught by a cuff shot in the process, but his work had bought Ladybug enough time to build a hand trap with the two mitts, the ring and the belt. She leaped over and fitted it onto Rogercop's hands. The belt, tied to the mitts and through the ring, pulled the villain's hands together so he couldn't shoot.

"I gotcha!" said Ladybug, taking the whistle from around his neck.

"Noooooo!" shouted Rogercop.

She stomped on the whistle, releasing the akuma, and purified it. The polka-dotted red oven mitt appeared in her hand, and she threw it into the air for the "Miraculous Ladybug" cure.

Roger Raincomprix was back to normal, sitting against the wooden partition in front of Ladybug. She was confident that all the people he had enslaved with his handcuffs were freed.

Roger said, "Uhh... what am I doing up here?"

Ladybug and Chat Noir did their usual victory fist-bump. "Pound it!"

Chat said, "As Rogercop would say, 'Justice has prevailed in the streets of Paris!'" (The last part was delivered in a robotic monotone.)

Chat's Miraculous beeped. "I'd stick around, but then you'd see me without my mask and... you wouldn't be able to resist me."

Ladybug chuckled. "I doubt that, but I'll have to take your word for it."

After Chat left, Ladybug spotted Chloé's purse, leaning up against the leg of a small table on the back wall. She picked up the bracelet that was lying on the floor near Roger. A mischievous smile crossed her face. She could resolve all the problems and make Chloé look foolish at the same time. Why not? She put the bracelet into Chloé's purse.

* * *

A few moments later, Chloé and André Bourgeois were back in the office.

Roger set down the purse on the desk in front of Chloé and said, "I think this belongs to you, Miss."

"My purse," said Chloé, looking inside it and taking something out. "My... my bracelet! But... how?"

"Roger, you found the bracelet!"

"Actually, it turns out it was in Chloé's bag all along. It must have fallen into a side pocket when that girl tripped over it," said Roger.

Ladybug covered a giggle. This was all working out perfectly!

Roger said, "No... wait a second. I saw Ladybug put it back into the purse. She did it right in front of me. I was a little dazed from being released from the akuma, but I clearly remember seeing seeing her do it."

"What?" said Chloé. "What were you doing with my bracelet, Ladybug?"

Ladybug gulped. This was not going so well after all.

"I found it on the floor in here. I apologize for using it, but I needed it as a part of my plan to defeat Rogercop. It must have fallen out of the purse and rolled in the struggle before I got here."

"There was no struggle in this office," said the Mayor. "I surrendered in the lobby when I saw Chloé was Rogercop's hostage. Chloé and I were both in handcuffs after that, sitting at the desk the whole time."

"Rogercop took my purse and put it in the back of the room so I couldn't call anyone," said Chloé. "Anyway, how did you know the bracelet was mine, Ladybug? Nobody said anything about it to you."

"I spoke to some eyewitnesses at the school," said Ladybug quickly. "Sometimes it helps to get insight into what happened right before an akumatization. It helps me understand the motives of the akuma victim, and how I might defeat them."

"Why did you put it back into Chloé's purse without saying anything?" asked the Mayor.

"That does seem rather suspicious to me," said Roger. "I hope you have a good explanation."

"I just assumed it had to be Chloé's, and returned it to her," said Ladybug. "I don't know how it got on the floor. It was over in the corner beside the vase."

"I know what happened," said Chloé. "Marinette stole it, and she gave it to you to sneak it back into my purse to get herself out of trouble. I can't believe you would cover for a thief!"

"Nothing like that happened. I never even saw the bracelet until Chat Noir pointed it out."

"Then it was Chat Noir that covered for her!" said Chloé. "He dropped it there and then conveniently pointed it out to you."

"No more accusations, please. Everyone is innocent until proven guilty," said Roger.

"Quiet, you," said Chloé. "If you hadn't let my bracelet be stolen right in front of your nose, and then refused to search the obvious culprit, then none of this would have happened."

"I have to agree with my daughter," said André. "This case was botched from start to finish. You're still fired. Being akumatized and trying to take over the city only makes it worse."

"I don't remember doing that," said Roger. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry isn't good enough. Turn in your uniform and your police car at once."

Roger said stiffly, "I was just about to do that when I was akumatized. I'll go now."

Roger headed out the door, scowling.

"Good riddance," said Chloé. "Daddy, get a competent officer on the case. Marinette should still be arrested for what she did."

"I have to go," said Ladybug. "I'm sure there's another explanation. I promise I'll talk to Chat Noir and get this cleared up."

"Please do it quickly," said André. "Or I will have to have Marinette arrested for petty larceny."

"Grand larceny, Daddy! It's worth over 10,000 euros. Also you should have Chat arrested as an accessory after the fact."

'I'll clear this up, don't worry. Bug out," said Ladybug. She swung out of sight to hide and detransform, in the nick of time.

"Tikki, how am I going to clear up this mess? I have to find Chat and get his side of the story, but he's back as a civilian now."

"You'll find him, Marinette," said Tikki.


	2. Taking the Fall

Adrien had a plenty of left-over nervous energy that night, so he transformed and was about to go out on a solo patrol when he saw there was a message from Ladybug on his baton.

"Chat Noir, I need to talk to you. I don't understand how Chloé's bracelet ended up where it did in the Mayor's office. Chloé and her father were both handcuffed and they didn't move from the desk. Rogercop wouldn't have done it; he just set the purse down in the back. If he looked in there and found the bracelet he would have shoved it in their faces to prove he was in the right. If you can shed any light on this, please let me know. Marinette – you know, the girl who helped you with Evillustrator – is going to have a really hard time clearing her name if you can't."

Chat Noir dropped the baton. "Plagg, claws in."

"Plagg, what am I going to do?" asked Adrien. "I can't tell the truth, that you were fooling around and got the bracelet stuck on your head."

Plagg said, "I thought the bracelet box was a tin of Camembert. Then when I found out it wasn't, it was too shiny to resist. Not my fault."

"It was completely your fault. Now that I think about it, why didn't you just phase out of it?"

"Having a metal ring around me nullifies my phasing. It's too much like the ring I'm magically bound to. "

"That's another reason not to tell the truth – it reveals a weakness that Hawk Moth could use against you. I see only one way out. I'm going to have to take the fall for you as a civilian."

"Really, you'd do that for me?"

"For Marinette."

"You'll be in a lot of trouble. You could go to jail."

"I'll tell Chloé it was a prank. She's more likely to let me get away with it than Marinette."

"What about when your father finds out?"

"Oh no! He'll punish me by pulling me out of school. But what choice do I have?"

"You could just let Marinette take the blame."

"I can't do that to a friend."

"You're such a good kitten. I hope it works out for you."

Adrien transformed back to Chat Noir and tried to call Ladybug. It went to her voicemail.

"M'Lady, I do know something. It was Adrien Agreste who took it. I was in the area and I saw a teacher out on the sidewalk, forced to do the motions of picking up trash when the trash was already gone. I went into the school to investigate and Adrien was there. He said the akuma was his fault. The bracelet rolled under his feet and he took it as a prank because he was annoyed with Chloé for flaunting it. He asked me to try to get it back to her in a way that would keep him out of trouble. I'm sorry."

* * *

Adrien went to his father next and told him the same story.

"I don't know if Chat Noir has gotten the bracelet back in a way that will keep me out of it, but I wanted to tell you just in case."

"This is disgraceful," said Gabriel. "What were you thinking? It will hurt the reputation of your brand. Associating with hooligan classmates has corrupted you."

"I'm really sorry, Father. I promise it won't happen again."

"I should pull you out of that school. Before this, Chloé was the person causing akumas there. Now it's you, too..."

Gabriel paused for a moment, then smiled.

"On second thought, I believe I can use this. Your image could use a streak of mischief. A touch of the bad boy... youthful high spirits. You can stay in school."

"Thank you, Father!"

"On one condition," said Gabriel. "From time to time, for the sake of publicity, I'll be asking you to pull a few more pranks. You'll have to pretend they're all your idea, of course."

"I would rather not hurt anyone else."

"That's my condition for you to return to school. If your image is going to include a wild side, you'll have to keep it up."

"All right, I suppose. Yes, Sir."

"Now, I need to see to getting you a lawyer. You could be prosecuted for filching that bracelet, even though you returned it indirectly."

"I don't think Chloé will press charges against me."

"We can't be sure of that. The whole business caused a great deal of trouble, and her father the mayor may have his own ideas for once."

"Does Gabriel Fashions have a good lawyer we can use?"

"We have business lawyers, and they wouldn't be any use for this. I've seen advertisements for a Mr. Saul Bonhomme. He seems to be competent in criminal matters. I had better call Saul."


	3. The Next Victim

The next day, Adrien was surprised by his father joining him at breakfast.

"Have you given any thought on the matter of whom to prank next?" asked Gabriel.

"Uh... no," said Adrien. "I didn't think I would need to right away."

"We need to strike while the iron is hot, and set your new image. Today."

"I can't think of anyone."

"How about the girl that won my recent hat contest, Marinette Dupain-Cheng?"

"Why her? I have no reason to bother her."

"Her winning hat was made of feathers, was it not? You have to model it even though you are allergic to feathers. We can spin that into a grudge."

"I don't have a grudge. She had no way of knowing that."

"That doesn't matter. For publicity purposes a company-related matter will work well."

"Marinette is a good friend and a good sport. So if I have to pick on someone, I know she'll be all right with it."

"You need to do something that really annoys her, at least for a short time. Otherwise it's no good."

"I'll think of something."

* * *

There was a murmur among the students when Adrien came into the classroom. As he walked to his desk, Chloe glared at him, then turned her face away.

"Dude, what happened? Why did you do it?" asked Nino.

"My lawyer advised me not to say anything," said Adrien. He kept his face impassive as he chewed on a piece of gum.

"Adrien dude , you owe us at least some explanation," said Nino. "I just can't believe you would do this."

"Why not?" asked Adrien. "I was already angry because my father broke his promise to be there for me for Parent's Day. When the bracelet Chloe was flaunting fell out of her purse and rolled under my feet, I just scooped it up as a prank."

"Many parents didn't come," said Max. "My mother had too much to do, getting prepared for a new job as an engineer, but I didn't prank anyone."

"Why didn't you stop when you saw how much trouble it was causing?" asked Alya. "You let Marinette get falsely accused. Sabrina's father get fired, and he got akumatized."

"I wasn't there for that part," said Adrien. "I slipped out to hide the bracelet. About Sabrina's dad – my lawyer is putting pressure on the Mayor to reinstate him. The Mayor was demanding an illegal search and making false accusations."

Marinette came in, a little late and with a tear-stained face. She stopped and stared at Adrien.

"How could you?" she asked.

"Don't hassle me. I've already said more than I should have," said Adrien. "It just seemed like a good idea at the time."

As Marinette was slipping into her seat, Adrien took the piece of gum out of his mouth and tossed it onto her bench.

Marinette tried to catch herself, stumbled, and ended up sitting on the gum.

"That's for the feather hat that made me sneeze."

Marinette went white, jumped up from her seat, and ran from the room.

"You're going to die for this, Agreste!" hissed Alya.

"I'll – I'll make it up to her!" said Adrien.

Adrien rushed out of the classroom and ran after Marinette.

A black butterfly, prepared in advance, followed them.


	4. Catastrophic

Adrien ran from the classroom after Marinette. She was already out of sight.

Then he spotted the purple butterfly flying toward the stairs. It might be after Marinette, tracking her by her emotions. He couldn't let it get to her!

He ran part-way down the stairs where he would be out of sight from the classroom.

"Plagg, claws out!"

Leaping with his vaulting pole, he caught up to the butterfly in midair. It might be a disaster, but he had to take the chance. He willed his destructive power to annihilate the akuma before it could possess him.

"Cataclysm!"

It worked. The akuma was gone.

Chat Noir leaped down to the courtyard and spotted Marinette ducking into the locker rooms, which led to the girl's and boy's bathrooms.

He got to the girl's bathroom door just as she closed it.

"Marinette, are you all right?" Chat called.

"Go away!" said Marinette.

"This is Chat Noir. An akuma butterfly was after you, but I destroyed it."

Marinette opened the door and looked at him with tear-filled eyes.

"For a second you sounded like Adrien Agreste. I thought I had feelings for him, but he's nothing but a bully. You know he stole the bracelet yesterday – today he put gum on my seat. He's horrible!"

"I'm really sorry."

"It's not your fault. You say I nearly got akumatized? How could Hawk Moth have reacted so fast?"

"I don't know."

"It's as if Hawk Moth knew exactly what Adrien was going to do this morning and he was prepared for it. Could Adrien himself be...?"

"I really doubt that."

"I wouldn't have believed it when I thought he was nice. But now..."

"One other person could have known... his father. But it couldn't be him."

"Why not.? Gabriel Agreste never leaves his house. He's brilliant but cold, even to his son. He's a very good lead. You and Ladybug should certainly check both of them out."

"I don't know..."

Chat's ring beeped.

Marinette said, "You used your Cataclysm, so you'd better go before you time out. Call Ladybug and talk it out with her."

"I can't leave it like this. You have to know the truth," said Chat. "Claws in."

"NO! You? This doesn't make any sense. Why did you act like that?"

Adrien explained how the bracelet got stuck on Plagg's head, how he had to confess to the theft, and how that lead to him doing another prank for his new "bad boy" image.

"You are such an idiot! You thought it was a good idea to prank me, and with gum?"

"I'm really sorry. I thought you would be a good sport about it."

"Well, I'm not. And if there was ever going to be anything between us, it's over."

"You know as Chat I like Ladybug, right?"

"When Ladybug finds out about this, she's not going to be happy either. Don't expect any romance there."

"You're not going to tell her, are you?"

"You expect to keep all this a secret from your crime-fighting partner?"

"Well..."

"Get out!"

Marinette ducked back into the bathroom and slammed the door on Adrien.


End file.
